The Lovely Ladies of IS
by Flashfire Freak
Summary: Houki, Ling, Laura, Cecilia, and Charlotte have formed a band to perform for a festival, but when a record label hears them he wants to sign them. Stepping in despite having nothing to do with the band, Tatenashi declares herself the manager and that the record label must go through her to have anything to do with the band. What's Tatenashi's angle, and what does she get out of it?
1. The Formation

Beta: DarkerThanYin

Original release date: 11/24/15

Disclaimer: I do not own anything in the Infinite Stratos universe. Alternate Universe

Author note: A friend [DarkerThanYin] and I were playing Rock Band 4 on Xbox One when I threw out the idea of IS girls creating a band. This is how this fanfiction began. :D

* * *

Chapter One – The Formation

"Charlotte, you've got to keep the beat moving!" exclaims Cecilia, turning around from the microphone.

Walking over to Charlotte on the drum set, Houki holds out her bass guitar in her left hand and holds out her right hand with the palm up, motioning for the drumsticks. Sighing, Charlotte reluctantly hands over the drumsticks and tightens the guitar strap around her body to more easily play the bass. Doing a few tests of the set with adjusting the seat height and distance, alongside ability to reach all of the drum heads and cymbals, Houki begins the driving beat for their band.

Feeling the driving force in full swing, Laura strums a few gentle measures before her fingers fly across the electric guitar, leading the lone audience member to a far away place, a battlefield strewn with comrades, storming the looming castle ahead of them, the rumbling thunder of storm clouds above, threatening a downpour at any moment. Cecilia singly strongly through it all, "…I'm just wondering if you'll be the one for me…"

Entering the deserted castle, the listener continues the journey to the top with soft guitar licks from both Laura and Charlotte, accompanied by the low rumbling from the drums and Ling's keyboard bringing small waves of sunshine into the castle. Finally arriving at the only door he hadn't opened, the mysterious character pants slightly, sweat running down his brow as he goes around the corpse of the recently deceased dragon, and opens the door and steps into the room. Spotting the princess dressed in a royal purple colored dress, the man delicately walks across the stone floor covered only by a square rug in the middle of the room, the same color as the dress. Charlotte's muted bass the only sound as the man walks across, footsteps muted by the rug. "…if only we can be together forever…" as the man gently kisses the princess.

As the sound of every instrument fades to nothing, Ichika opens his eyes, smiles, and claps his hands.

"Amazing, simply amazing!" calls out Ichika, still clapping.

Getting out from behind the drum set, Houki makes her way, alongside Ling and Charlotte, to the front of the stage and take a bow.

"Fantastic! What is the name of your band?" calls out a female voice from the back.

The five girls exchange looks with each other before Ichika pitches in, "I'm curious about the name as well."

"We…hadn't thought of a name" answers Cecilia.

"My my, I'm surprised" states the unknown female voice as she steps out of the darkness an waves a fan in front of her face, smiling.

"Tatenashi?!" exclaims Ichika, visibly taken back.

"Of course, that IS my name" answers Tatenashi smirking.

"Why are you here?" asks Ichika confused.

"You do remember that I am the student body president and therefore I get to inspect each group for the festival and give a final decision on whether or not the group gets to perform or not" answers Tatenashi.

"If all you need is a name, then why not 'The Lovely Ladies of IS'?" suggests Ichika looking between Tatenashi and the five girls on stage.

"I like it" states Ling happily, visibly bouncing with excitement.

A few hushed moments later, Laura states, "I too like the name."

"Then we are now 'The Lovely Ladies of IS'" announces Cecilia.

"Congratulations then, I believe we can save the best for last for the festival…unless you all disagree with that and would rather have a different time slot?" announces Tatenashi as she looks at a clipboard.

Gathering in a semi-circle, The Lovely Ladies of IS begin a brief conversation in which Cecilia steps forward, crosses her arms, and states, "We'd like to be on first."

Scribbling on the clipboard, Tatenashi states, "I agree. I'm sure you all will drive the rest of the student body into a frenzy for the rest of the festival. But you all might want to prepare an extra song or two, just in case if the students want an encore."

"But the festival is in three days!" exclaims Laura.

"Then you best hurry and write something" states Tatenashi before staring at Ichika and sashaying her hips back and forth as she exits the auditorium, giving a few backwards glances at Ichika.

Looking around at each other, Laura says quietly, "Let's pack up for the night. Bring some ideas for a new song tomorrow, and we'll work on it."

* * *

/*three days later*/

Behind the curtain, Cecilia takes another drink of water from her bottle before screwing the cap on tightly and placing it on the floor. Doing one last check over their instruments, each gives Cecilia a thumbs up who gives Tatenashi a thumbs up. As the curtain rises, Houki begins drumming, driving the band to the measure where Charlotte and Laura join. Seconds later the audience is mentally transported to the castle as Ichika, experiencing the wonderful emotional highs and lows as they are taken through the castle as the man looking for the princess.

Finally concluding, the audience quietly wipes tears that had unknowingly fallen from their eyes and down their face. "ENCORE! ENCORE! ENCORE!" chants the audience.

Hearing the much slower taps as Houki hits the rim of the snare, Ling begins into her keyboard, familiar warmth and harmony spreading out and into the crowd. Plucking their way along, Laura and Charlotte keep the guitars audible, but let Ling lead the way as Cecilia sings of dancing in the spring rain. Finishing the song, the five join together at the front of the stage and give a bow, before disappearing under the rapidly lowering curtain. Ichika helps pack their gear, not wanting to infringe upon the next act's time.

Gathering at the back of the auditorium, The Lovely Ladies of IS quietly peer around looking for seats for the rest of the festival when a voice rumbles behind them, "You are 'The Lovely Ladies of IS', correct? I am Tony Dratner, head of 'Magical Music', a record company. I would like to sign you five—"

"Oh, are you now? I'm their manager, and all negotiations go through me" states Tatenashi, giving the five and Ichika a brief look.

"Oh, I wasn't aware of that-" begins Dratner before Tatenashi interrupts, "Then you and I should talk in private" before sauntering out of the auditorium with Tony close behind.

* * *

Author note: While I am the technical writer, DarkerThanYin gets creative input as we brainstormed it together a bit. Thank you for reading.


	2. The Agreement

Beta: DarkerThanYin

Original release date: 12/23/15

Disclaimer: I do not own anything in the Infinite Stratos universe. Alternate Universe

* * *

Chapter Two – The Agreement

"Follow me, Mr. Dratner" states Tatenashi with a hint of amusement in her voice as she exits the auditorium and enters a nearby classroom.

"So where would you like to begin?" inquiries Tatenashi smiling.

"The name of the band. 'The Lovely Ladies of IS'. Is that the name you all really want to be called?" states Dratner.

"I don't see any problem with the name" answers Tatenashi with a hint of a smile on her face.

Scribbling down some words on a piece of paper, Dratner asks, "How about the dedication to the overall recording of music?"

"If you are asking if we are willing to drop out of the IS Academy to make music full time, I must decline. We will remain first and foremost students at the IS Academy. If you are unable to accept that, then we are done here" answers Tatenashi.

Pausing and holding Tatenashi's stare, Dratner finally breaks eye contact and scribbles down a few more lines on the paper.

"Understandable. What genre bests represents the band?"

"Whatever they feel like" answers Tatenashi.

Tapping the end of his pen on the table, Dratner states, "That's not the answer I'm looking for. What is the genre(s) that most of the songs will fit into?"

"Let's go with 'Pop' for now. The songs were popular by the sound of the students cheering" answers Tatenashi with a smirk.

Sighing, Dratner makes a few notes on his paper before asking, "Answer honestly, how long do you think 'The Lovely Ladies of IS' will survive as a band?"

Furrowing her eyebrows, Tatenashi asks, "What do you mean?"

"What I mean is, what is to keep you all from fading into the background like many other artists and bands? Five girls in a band, what makes keep the music coming and keeps it fresh?" asks Dratner honestly.

A lightbulb instantly goes off in Tatenashi's mind and she answers with a smile, "We have the world's only male IS pilot, Ichika Orimura."

Smiling, Dratner states, "That's a hook that will keep people coming back. What's his role in the band?"

"He does whatever is needed, picking up where needed" answers Tatenashi slyly.

"Hmm. He'll have to be on at least four songs for each full album, which we define as a minimum of ten songs" states Dratner.

"Two songs per album" replies Tatenashi as she crosses her arms.

Narrowing his eyes, Dratner answers, "Three songs, period."

"Then we get to choose what Ichika does and it may not always be the same instrument or sing" states Tatenashi, smiling.

Sighing, Dratner answers, "Fine. I'll get the paperwork drawn up tomorrow and sent over in the next few days. Who are the members?"

"Cecilia Alcott as vocalist, Laura Bodewig as lead guitarist, Charlotte Dunois on the bass guitar, Ling Huang on keyboards, Houki Shinonono as the drummer, Ichika Orimura as whatever the song needs, and of course myself." answers Tatenashi.

"We won't need Kanzashi for lighting and sound as the venues will provide people for that" answers Dratner firmly.

"What will your boss say when you've failed to sign us and another record company manages to? Also, I retain the right to make agreements for 'The Lovely Ladies of IS', even after you sign us" asks Tatenashi with a smirk.

Scowling, Dratner answers, "Why would I agree to that?"

"Because Mr. Dratner, the world is now run by women. I'm almost sure your boss is female, and I don't think she'd like to find out you failed to do your job properly—" begins Tatenashi with a small smirk.

"Fine, fine! I'll agree to that" interrupts Dratner hastily, offering his hand out.

"One last thing, we want a ten percent cut of the profits, or no deal" states Tatenashi, retracting her hand, looking at Dratner.

Exhaling loudly, Dratner answers in a defeated tone, "That'll be fine as well."

Smiling, Tatenashi answers, "Great! Glad we could come to an agreement, Mr. Dratner" before shaking his hand firmly.

Exiting the room, the two part ways and go their respective ways. Quietly entering the auditorium where another group performances a skit, Tatenashi scans the vast room for the girls and Ichika before spotting them in the back row a little ways back. Doing what she does best and that is appear when she is unexpected, Tatenashi appears behind Cecilia's seat and murmurs into Cecilia's ear, "We need to talk about the band soon."

Moving her head ever so slightly, Cecilia whispers back, "After the festival we can."

"Fine. But bring Ichika" answers Tatenashi before seemingly disappearing into thin air.

A few hours later as all of the participants in the festival have finished, Ling yawns and takes a few steps towards the exit before Cecilia states, "The student body president wishes to speak with us all", before taking a few steps to find Tatenashi when she appears.

"Follow me" states Tatenashi leading the confused members of the band into a nearby classroom.

Sitting down, the girls and most definitely Ichika look confused.

"Now, I've convinced the representative from Magical Music, Tony Dratner, to sign us on. Here's what I've accepted for all of us. First and foremost our education comes first. Ichika has to have some part, but I figure he can play a guitar or sing a duet with Cecilia. But name of 'The Lovely Ladies of IS' to remain, unless another name is brought up. Any objections?" states Tatenashi looking around the group.

"Why do I have to have a part in the band?" asks Ichika, furrowing his brows.

"Because you are the only male IS pilot in the world, besides who wouldn't like an all female band, minus one guy? Any other objections? No? Then once we get the papers, we'll sign them" answers Tatenashi with a smile.

* * *

Author note: Thanks for reading! And have a Merry Christmas or whatever holiday you celebrate! :)

-LabMember009Issac- Houki started out as bass guitar, but when Charlotte was unable to keep up the beat on drums, I had Houki switch. My reasoning with Houki being on the drum set is that with her Kendo training her arm muscles are a bit better to keep the beat moving. I had Laura take lead guitar, because if you purchase the first season of Infinite Stratos on Blu-ray, a soundtrack CD comes [it did with mine at least] with the episodes, and Laura's song, 'An Die Freude' has a lot more electric guitar [at least to my ears] than the others, hence that choice.


	3. Talent Discovery

Beta: None

Original release date: 6/03/16

Disclaimer: I do not own anything in the Infinite Stratos universe. Alternate Universe

* * *

Chapter Three – Talent Discovery

"So Ichika, what musical talents do you have?" asks Houki curiously.

Scratching his head, Ichika answers, "I'm not certain actually. Haven't tried to play any instrument."

"Perhaps you should try some of our instruments and see what you're good at" suggests Charlotte.

Shrugging his shoulders, Ichika answers, "Whatever you all think is best."

"But can you sing Ichika dear?" inquiries Cecilia, batting her eyelashes.

"Uh, I'm not certain of that either" answers Ichika uncertainly.

"Then let's get our own private room and see what you're capable of" remarks Cecilia with a wink.

"No, ve shall spend time with Ichika discovering skills randomly" declares Laura putting her foot down.

"How will we go about doing such a thing?" asks Houki.

Looking around at each other, the girls are silent until Ichika speaks up hesitantly, "Why not randomly select numbers and go about it that way?"

Huddling up, the girls converse in hushed whispers, taking brief looks at Ichika before returning to the on going conversation.

"We are going to use your idea Ichika and select a number each and then you will randomly select a number without knowing who has what number" states Charlotte with a smile.

"Alright then" answers Ichika, standing there.

Several seconds later, Laura demands, "Have you selected a number yet?"

"Oh, I need to select a number now? I was waiting for you all to get into a group and select a number, sorry. I choose the number four" answers Ichika.

Stepping forward, Houki crosses her arms and says, "Alright Ichika, I guess it's you and I first."

"You two get one hour before we'll be back" warns Ling as she exits the room last.

"Let's begin with it then" instructs Houki as Ichika sits down behind the drum set.

Peering around a corner, the sound of drums being played in the background, Ling asks with concern in her voice, "What if Ichika is good at drums?"

"Ling dear, we just don't have need for two drummers. At least not all the time. But a backup drummer might be nice" answers Cecilia before imagining a shirtless Ichika expertly playing the drums, driving the tempo at an exhaustive but exhilarating one.

"Mmm" answers Ling musing.

Roughly an hour later the remaining girls barge into the practice room, declaring, "It's time for Ichika to try another instrument, Houki."

Sighing, Houki answers, "I was afraid of that. Ichika has…very little going for him in the way of drumming. Maybe he has latent talent in another area."

"Ichika, choose a number between one to three, and five" instructs Laura staring at Ichika.

Several hours later, everyone gathers in a circle in a various office around a circular table. Head slumped onto the table and glass of water in his right hand, Ichika rests before Tatenashi enters the room holding a stack of papers in her hands.

"Have we discovered what instruments Ichika is good with?" asks Tatenashi with a smile.

As the girls clamber to speak, Tatenashi holds up her hands and instructs, "One at a time, please. Let's begin with Miss Huang. What is your opinion of Ichika playing keyboard?"

Sighing, Ling answers, "He wasn't bad, but he definitely wasn't any good. He shouldn't do anything with a keyboard."

"Alright" comments Tatenashi crossing out keyboard on a piece of paper. "Miss Shinonono, what is your opinion of Ichika's ability to play drums?"

"He lacks focus and is terrible. His ability to keep with the tempo is deplorable" answers Houki arms crossed and looking away from Ichika.

"Miss Bodewig?" asks Tatenashi as she crosses out drummer.

Snorting, Laura answers with contempt, "He has no skill vith guitars."

"Miss Dunois?" asks Tatenashi as she crosses lead guitar off of the list.

"Well…Ichika isn't bad, and kept pace with me. So, with some more practice I think he could improve greatly" answers Charlotte, giving Ichika a small smile, despite Ichika's head still being on the table with the glass of water only partially consumed.

"Last but not least, Miss Alcott" requests Tatenashi giving a checkmark beside bass guitar.

"Ichika had a wonderful voice and we made a wonderful couple together" answers Cecilia beaming.

"Wonderful! Then Ichika will play bass guitar on a song and sing with Cecilia on another, and we'll decide when we record an album what else Ichika will do. Now, let's sign this paperwork and I'll get it sent over to Dratner" states Tatenashi beginning the signing process.

"So…Ichika will only be playing bass guitar or singing, not even attempting to get better with other instruments?" inquiries Houki with a hint of concern in her voice.

Smiling, Tatenashi answers, "That is quite correct. While Ichika can improve with different instruments, this paperwork will only include him on bass guitar and vocals for the first three albums before a new contract is to be negotiated."

Clambering to be heard, Houki, Laura, and Ling are interrupted by Tatenashi raising her voice, "This is dependent on your recommendations, which was given before any more information was given to clear your train of thought. Rest assured Ichika will be shared around the band equally."

Finally awakening, Ichika groans before asking quietly, "What's going on?"

"You're going to be shared around the band in equal time slots. Now, please sign your name on the pieces of paper where you see the rest of our names" answers Tatenashi with a smile.

Signing his name multiple times, Ichika blinks slowly, "Can you explain to me about this sharing thing?"

"It means each girl will have equal time alone with you, of which is binding since you have since signed the contract.

"What?!" exclaims Ichika starting to realize the predicament he gotten himself into.

* * *

Author note: Thanks for waiting for so long for an update! I only have so much time, so unfortunately most every fanfic that isn't 'Unseen and Unheard From' has been placed on the back burner.

-Guest – Not, this fanfic isn't dead, I'm just busy. But thank you, I take your review that you do/did enjoy this fanfic. :)


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